Hart's expected omission opens World Cup door for Pope

16 May 2018

Such is the case of England where every position has more than four good players.

Liverpool's Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was surely one of the "19 or 20" players that Southgate said in March had sealed their place in the 23, only for a season-ending knee injury to increase the manager's midfield headache.

Though his form at West Ham has not been convincing where he lost his position to Adrian, Hart is undoubtedly the most experienced goalkeeper at England.

Joe Hart has become the first high-profile omission from England's squad for the summer's World Cup after Gareth Southgate opted against selecting the national side's most experienced current player for the tournament in Russian Federation.

Despite his struggles for form and game-time on loan at West Ham, Hart's omission is somewhat surprising given how Southgate spoke of him in March when playing third fiddle to Butland and Pickford.

But sources have told ESPN FC that Southgate has chosen to make the selection on recent form rather than Hart's experience of major tournaments, leaving the keeper, capped 75 times, facing up to the end of his worldwide career. To get the latest soccer news, text "SPORTS" to 22840.

Sportsmail revealed last week the midfielder would be named in Gareth Southgate's 35-man squad, which was submitted to Federation Internationale de Football Association on Monday.

By contrast Pope has been rock solid for Burnley and appears to have earned the last goalkeeping spot on the plane to Russian Federation, ousting Hart in the process.